Dairy-Free Raspberry Granola Bars

Because I know that what we eat largely contributes to how we feel, I have been on a quest to find healthy, but tasty food options for my family. After school snack options are the most challenging. Most of them are processed with too much sugar and not enough nutrients. So, I decided to create a healthy recipe of my own; it’s a mixture and modification of a couple of different recipes. These delicious raspberry bars are both dairy-free and gluten-free. Check out the recipe below.

Ingredients:

1/2 c. coconut oil

1 1/2 c. granola

3 tbsp. raw honey

2 c. frozen raspberries

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. agave

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp. cornstarch, mixed with 2 tbsp. of cold water

Zest of 1 lemon (about 1 tablespoon)

1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

Instructions: Use a food processor to grind the granola and mix it with the coconut oil and raw honey. Place half of it in a 6 inch nonstick pan. Let it chill until you get done with the raspberry filling.

Mix the frozen raspberries, water, lemon juice and agave in a saucepan and bring to a low boil. Then slowly stir in the cornstarch and water mixture. Once the filling starts to thicken, add the zest of lemon and vanilla extract, stir and let it cool. Pull out your pan of granola mixture and start spreading the raspberry filling on top of it. Take the remaining of your granola mixture and spread it on top, then place in the freezer to chill. Once it hardens pull them out, cut into squares and enjoy!

Kela Price is the founder of Let's Get Mentally Fit and a wife and mother of 2. She is also a former marketing executive who became fascinated with psychology after battling postpartum depression. Currently, she is a graduate student pursuing a master's of science in psychology.